This year our tournament will be Oct. 12-14, 2018.

We will return to the Westin Park Central as our tournament hotel.

The majority of entries are put on a waiting list and removed from that list when your fees are received. Please expedite processing of your fees. In lieu of the actual check you can email me a copy or picture of a PO or check.

Meal fees are $40 per participant. There isn't an elegant way to assess these fees. When you register a student in CX, LD, or the SHD they are immediately put on a waiting list. Your invoice will show a charge for them even though they are on the waiting list. When they are released from the waiting list and put in the tournament meal fees will then accrue. I know this will end up with many of you having double meal fee charges. I will try to go in and correct this as quickly as possible.

It is an expectation of the tournament that students will be accompanied by an official employee of the school district the students represent.

PF and IE will be one day only on Friday Oct. 12. All events will be hosted on the St. Mark's campus. This year we are offering competition in Congressional debate, foreign extemp and domestic extemp. Please register promptly as IE's will be locked on Sept. 12 so we can adjust the number of LD entries we can accept. We are using virtually every available space on campus and there is a literal zero-sum tradeoff between the IE entries and the LD entries we can accommodate. Students may not double enter in Congress and PF. They may, however, triple enter Congress and both extemps or Public Forum and both extemps.

CX and LD will have six preliminary rounds and 2 elimination rounds hosted on the St. Mark's campus Friday and Saturday. Sunday elimination rounds starting with quarterfinals will be at the Westin. For the first time, that I'm aware of, we will allow St. Mark's students to participate in the Varsity CX division of the Heart of Texas Invitational.

The Sophomore Hoe Down will accept 32 teams. We will try a second year of a traditional tournament format. There will be six preliminary rounds and 2 elimination rounds, starting with quarterfinals, on Friday and Saturday. Sunday will host a final round at the tournament hotel.

Online registration will open on Thursday. Please register online using tabroom once you are in the metroplex.

MPJ for CX and LD will open Friday Oct. 5 and will close Thursday Oct. 11 at 5 pm.